


A Mad Tea Party

by TheQueen



Series: Chasing the Rabbit [3]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Time Travel, Angst with a Happy Ending, High School, Keith (Voltron) is Bad at Feelings, Lance (Voltron) is a Mess, M/M, Season/Series 01, Slow Burn, Time Travel
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-10-07
Updated: 2019-03-28
Packaged: 2019-07-27 20:06:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 12,374
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16226399
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheQueen/pseuds/TheQueen
Summary: Between the threat of government conspiracies, tangled interpersonal relationships, and the fear of failing, Lance and Keith try their best to keep their heads above water long enough to uncover the truth of why they're here.A sequel to Down the Rabbit Hole and Advice from a Caterpillar





	1. One

 

It’s raining when they land.

The steady downpour slams against the glass windows of the airport, rattling the room and drowning out the chatter around them in favor of the crackling thunder.

“I thought this was a desert,” Keith grumbles, popping the last of his granola bar into his mouth before balling up the wrapper and chucking it into the nearest trash bin.

Lance frowns, rubbing his stomach. “Global warming?”

Keith laughs quietly while rolling his eyes before walking over to the kiosk to buy another granola bar.

Lance checks his phone, the bright light near blinding in the dim of the airport, the lack of sunlight casting the room in muted hues. The usually sunny town in the distance looking oddly dark and dangerous in the overcast. 

“Shivanni texted,” Keith says as he walks back over, a cookie clutched in his hand. Lance holds out a waiting palm and smiles as Keith hands him a bag of chips. “She says she’s just landed.”

“The Garrison sent out a text alert that the bus will be delayed another twenty minutes,” Lance groans, rolling his shoulders before slumping further in his seat. Next to him, a group of fellow students groan in despair. “At least this place has free wifi.”

Keith snorts in agreement before slipping his headphones back on.

The flight over had been uneventful, almost peaceful. As the plane had taken off, Keith had grabbed his hand and squeezed it once before letting it go as if telling him _it’s okay_.

They had yet to talk about that moment Macy’s or any of the moments that had been leading up to it. They hadn’t talked about the lines they’d drawn years before, lines that were starting to feel blurrier and blurrier.

At some point, Lance feels time slip away like water through cupped fingers. Slowly and then all at once. The rain a soothing lullaby as it slams into the concrete all around. The occasional roll of thunder and spark of lightning growing only closer and closer as the feeling of something wrong pulls at the edge of his awareness.

He blinks sleepily out at the gray cloudy sky as someone taps him on the shoulder.

“Hey sleepy heads,” Shivanni giggles, walking around to take a seat on Lance’s left. “How are you?”

Lance grunts noncommittally as he forces himself up, swiping weakly at the string of spit forming on the corner of his mouth.

Keith yawns jaw-crackingly wide. “Hey.”

Shivanni smiles weakly, “Hey.”

Keith frowns and purposefully rolls his shoulder, “It’s doing great.”

Shivanni nods and then turns to Lance, “How was the family?”

“Exhausting,” Lance admits before adding, “But good… I- We needed to go.”

“We?” Shivanni repeats.

“We,” Lance nods. Everyone knew they’d been working to repair their friendship after the incident. There was no shame in admitting this to her who’d helped them plan their first therapist appointment and every one after. “My mom might adopt him.”

Shivanni laughs, loud enough to rival the rain. “I see you conned her good then?”

Keith rolls his eyes, small genuine smile playing at the corner of his lips. “I’m just glad your brother didn’t kill us in our sleep.”

“We got better,” Lance defends. “I promised to call them more.”

“Good,” Shivanni nods, satisfied. “That’s good.”

“How was your family?” Lance asks as a new text appears, notifying them at the hover bus might finally be arriving. “Your sister?”

“She’s better,” Shivanni grins. “I think college has been good for her. Or at least she’s met some good people that make it good, you know?”

“I get it,” Lance grins reassuringly.

“Sorry we kind of went dark over break,” Keith mumbles around the last of his third cookie.

“That’s okay,” Shivanni sighs. “I mean, I know Aaron tried to get in contact with you, but…”

“Family drama,” Lance shrugs. “I honestly forgot to call back.”

“He had his own thing the last two days,” Shivanni says as the group of students stand up and grab their bags.

Lance checks his phone. Their bus was finally here.

“He’ll tell you when he can,” Shivanni cuts Keith off when he opens his mouth to question. “I think it’s something he’ll want to tell all of us.”  

.

Aaron is already unpacking by the time Lance arrives.

He, Keith, and Shivanni had departed at the gate with a promise to meet up later for dinner to catch up with everyone. Apparently no one had heard from Hunk all break either.

“Hey,” Lance greets, throwing his duffle bag onto the bed. He had half a mind to just pass out but knew it would just ruin his sleep schedule. “Sorry about not calling you back before.”

Aaron shrugs, turning around. Lance frowns when he notices the dark circles under his eyes. “Yeah. We can talk about it now that we’re all together. I also got some bad news…”

“About this or something else?” Lance presses, uncertain. Aaron honestly looks two seconds from passing out. “Shivanni mentioned something happened over break.”

Aaron looks away, expression unreadable. Lance crosses the room and takes his friend’s hand in his. “You don’t have to tell me,” Lance reassures.

“It’s just... “ Aaron shakes his head. “It’s nothing.”

“Dude,” Lance squeezes his hand. Outside he can hear the other students, their voices carrying down the hallway from open dorm room doors as everyone tried to settle back in. But here in the safety of their room, it is only them. Lance and Aaron.

When Lance had met Aaron he’d remembered an annoyance, someone who grated on his nerves, who’d acted too spoiled and too frivolous.  Now, he sees only a friend, someone who was willing to risk everything, his education and his safety, for the sake of a hunch. He remembers how Aaron had to drop out last time around.

“It’s not nothing,” Lance corrects. “It’s troubling you and after… after everything I consider you a really good friend, Aaron. I- If I can help…”

Aaron doesn’t say anything for a moment, gaze drawn to the floor.

“I want to help you,” Lance promises.

“Okay,” Aaron whispers. “Not... I’m not ready yet, but I don’t want to lie to you.”

“No,” Lance nods, remembering the last few months. “I think we’ve all done enough lying.”

.

It takes a few days before they all get a chance to meet.

Lauren and Mark are the hardest to pin down. Their schedules going crazy as the upperclassmen get ready for their internships. Their finals set for the end of November instead of mid-December leaving the two scrambling to cram.

“We might have gotten a bit caught up in all… this,” Mark admits as they all crowd in Aaron and Lance’s dorm room. The familiarity of it all almost welcoming with the added bonus of Keith sitting next to him.

The only thing missing…

“So we’re pretty much useless until our internship starts,” Lauren groans, slumping pitifully against Mark.

“At least you’re getting assigned to Bolling!” Shivanni grins. “I’ve always wanted to go to DC.”

“How is it you’ve seen most of Europe but none of the US?” Aaron teases.

“Layovers to India,” Shivanni jokes, lifting her arms to strike a flexing pose.

“The good thing about Bolling is it’s all experimental equipment,” Mark grins, “Which might just be the sort of information we need, all things considering.”

“All things considering?” Lance prompts.

Lauren frowns, looking at Lance and Keith before turning to Aaron, “I thought you said you called him?”

“He tried,” Keith clarifies.

“So you guys know my cousin right? The crazy one,” Aaron starts.

“Maybe not so crazy,” Shivanni cuts in, grinning. “I mean… who would have thought?”

“Guys…” Lance whines. “I get it. I should have called back. But the suspense is killing me!”

“Operation Lion,” Aaron grins, grabbing his laptop. “You will not believe what were in Iverson’s emails. Constant references to this excavation dig about forty minutes from here in the mountains.”

“The smoke,” Keith gasps, eyes wide as he turned to Lance. Both of them thinking the same thing. The previously joyful mood plummets as Lance starts to understand the strange sensation of _wrong_ that has been following him around since he landed. Blue…

“Smoke?”

“When we were out by The Cabin, we saw smoke in the distance,” Lance whispers, hand on his chin as he tries to think. Why would they be looking for Blue? How would they even know she was there?

“Iverson mentions that they’ve been looking for something big,” Shivanni grins. “Look,” she passes Aaron’s laptop to Lance where a hundred emails seem to be saved into a pdf. “They keep referring to it as ‘The Lion.’”

Lance leans over so Keith can see as well, skimming through schematics and arguments about equipment as Iverson argues with someone named Thomas about how long it was taking before he catches a name.

“Professor Sutherland is mentioned a lot,” Keith jumps in. “See here. ‘Allison mentioned that we’d have better luck going deeper.’ What does that mean?”

“We don’t know,” Aaron says as Lance hands him back his laptop. “But at least we know our next target.”

“We can’t risk breaking into two professors’ offices so soon,” Lance warns. “I mean last time…”

Shivanni fidgets awkwardly as the room descends into meaningful silence.

“That’s where my cousin comes in,” Aaron argues. “He’s a hacker. He says if I can just get him an in…”

It’s then that the door flies open, revealing a sweaty and flustered Hunk. “Guys.” he gasps as he slams the door shut behind him, his arrival sending everyone into a muted panic. “We’re in trouble.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> DUN DUN DUN!
> 
> So it begins! The last leg of our journey is here just in time for the last season of Voltron to be announced. It's crazy to believe this show is almost over. Like I mentioned before, I have every intention of finishing this series off with a proper ending. As long as y'all are reading, I'm writing. 
> 
> On that note, 15 chapters is low balling it. I've got the outline of this story pretty much writing and the first five chapters planned out, but we never know where these crazy kids might take us. 
> 
> Please let me know what you think! XD


	2. Two

Professor Sutherland’s office is large. Dominated by one large sitting area, bookcases, and an equally large desk. Great bay windows taking up the entire back wall to let in a steady stream of Nevada sun that leaves the office just a touch too hot. 

_ Stuffy _ , Hunk decides while he tries and fails to make himself comfortable on the sofa. The heat sticks to his skin. To his right, he watches the Professor pour them a cup of tea. 

“Sugar?” she asks.

“N--,” he clears his throat, “No thank you.”

She hands him a small china cup and saucer. The clear orange liquid twinkles up at him. He takes a sip. Bitter. 

“I want to thank you for meeting with me again on such short notice,” she says, taking a seat on the stiff reading chair. She sets her cup on the coffee table without drinking it. 

The whole room feels too formal, too much for just a professor, even a professor so highly renowned and published as Professor Sutherland. Part of Hunk feels like he’s having tea with a Queen. Old fashioned and strangely British with old leather bound books on grand bookcases only adding to the aesthetic. He takes another sip of his tea, prefering to hold the cup in his hand to give him something to do. 

His palms are sweaty. 

“Of course,” Hunk says, smiling. He’ll explain to Shivanni why he was late. “You mentioned my friends were in trouble…”

“No, no,” she says, trying to be reassuring. Behind her a stray cloud blocks the sun, casting the room in shadow. “They’re not in trouble, per say. More so their behavior has been brought to my attention.”

“Their behavior?” Hunk echoes. “I’m not sure…”

“You are close to Cadet Kogane, are you not?” Professor Sutherland asks, cutting him off. 

“Yes,” Hunk nods, eyes narrowing. It feels like a test. He admits he hadn’t taken the threats against Keith seriously despite Lance’s insistence. All being said and done, this was still a school. These were still their professors. To threaten a student’s life.... Now he sits in Professor Sutherland’s office and does his best not to spill his tea. “He’s one of my closest friends.” 

“Then you might be aware that his performance in class has been inconsistent,” she probes. 

Hunk braces himself. “He had a rough week.” 

She hums, glancing away to her desk and then back to him. Her expression thoughtful. “Their instructor, Commander Shirogane, mentioned the same thing.” 

“If their mentor said as much, I have to admit I’m not sure why I’m here,” Hunk asks, testing the water. 

She bites. “Have you noticed anything odd, Cadet Galeai?”

“No ma’am,” Hunk lies. There was nothing normal about what he and his friends were doing. 

She stares at him for a moment, her smile falling away. “Your friends have gained quite a bit of attention, Cadet Galeai. I suggest you answer my questions truthfully.”

“Ma’am, am I in trouble?” Hunk asks, setting the cup down. The back of his neck feels sweaty. 

“No one is in trouble,” she promises, but Hunk is certain she is lying. The cloud moves, the sun returns, but the room feels strangely cold. “I suppose we are just worried.”

“Lance and Keith have been under a lot of stress lately,” Hunk says, careful not to reveal too much as he feeds her crumbs, nothing she couldn’t find out on her own. He has a feeling he won’t be able to leave without giving something. Still the tea sits heavy in his stomach. “They’ve signed up for counselling to manage it.” 

Her smile returns, pleased. “Counselling? That’s good to know.” she nods to herself, satisfied. The room warms. “Thank you, Cadet. I appreciate your time.”

He stands when she stands. “If you notice anything,” she says as she opens the door. “Please, don't’ be afraid to let me know.” 

Hunk smiles, weakly. “Of course, Professor.” 

He does not dare move until she closes the door. The hallway is empty.  _ Ten minutes, _ he thinks, checking his watch. He wipes his palms on his uniform pants and force his legs forward.  _ It was only ten minutes. _

. 

Lance’s knuckles are white from tension as he grip’s Keith’s hands in his own. 

“If they weren’t watching you before they certainly are now,” Hunk says, collapsing into the seat Mark offers him. “I tried telling you guys over break but no one seems to answer their phone these days.”

Aaron shoots him a meaningful glance and Lance flinches. “Sorry...”

Keith nudges him and sighs. “I should have been more aware. You were going through a lot.” 

“Not that this isn’t terrifying, but I have to know. What kept you so occupied this break?” Lauren asks, kicking her legs onto Mark’s lap. 

“Family drama,” Lance shrugs before pausing, looking at the group of people before him. Keith and Hunk. Shivanni and Aaron. Mark and Lauren. His family, his friends, and his team. If he can’t trust them… “I came out,” he explains, “And now I guess I’m coming out to you guys. I’m bisexual.” 

He holds his breath and waits. Keith gives him an encouraging smile. 

“Thanks for telling us, Lance,” Shivanni says, the first to speak. “Can I… can I give you a hug?”

Lance jumps off his lofted bed and meets her in the middle of the room. It’s a cue for everyone to rush forward. Soon Lance finds him enveloped in a great group hug, warm and a little sweaty and smelling of the off brand garrison-provided shampoo. 

Only Keith stands to the side, letting Lance enjoy his moment. When Lance catches his eye, he smiles blindingly bright. 

“Okay, okay,” Lance cries, pushing everyone away as he wipes stray tears from his eyes. “We should… um… yeah.” 

Aaron claps him hard on the back before taking a seat on the floor. Everyone follows until they’re all sitting on Aaron’s worn orange rug in a circle like they’d been transported back to kindergarten. 

“I’ve completed my emotion quota for the week,” Lauren jokes. Shivanni laughs and leans in towards Hunk’s side as Mark punches her lightly on the shoulder. “Back to business.” 

Lance chuckles, wiping the last of his tears away before taking a deep breath. Saying it out loud will never stop feeling good. 

“I think we need to be careful,” Keith says, returning their attention to the matter at hand. “But we can’t stop.” 

Lauren nods, face serious. “If we change our behavior now it’ll look way too suspicious. They’ll know Hunk said something.” 

“Why is it me though?” Keith groans. Lance pats him on the knee. “Why are they targeting me? It’s not like we  did anything before Iverson threatened Lance.”

“We won’t know until we know,” Aaron sighs. “For now we keep our heads down and proceed with caution. Hunk?”

Hunk grunts. 

“You’re our contact. I think you should get in there and see what we can learn about Professor Allison Sutherland. She seems to be the key in all this,” Aaron says, hand on his chin as he thinks. “It’ll also be our in into her office.” 

“You want me to bug her,” Hunk clarifies. 

“I want you to be the best teacher’s pet you can possible be and bug her,” Aaron grins. 

Hunk covers his face with his hands, voice muffled when he says, “This is going to be terrifying.”

“You can do it,” Shivanni reassures. “And we’ll be with you every step of the way.” 

Hunk smiles at her, grateful. 

“The minute we can, we get Hussain an in,” Aaron continues. “My cousin is a grade-A hacker. An asshole but a genius. If anyone can tell us what’s going on in the Garrison system he can.”

“Get me in contact with him,” Shivanni commands. “I’ll build what he needs.”

“We need to get eyes on that dig site, see what might not have been digitized,” Lance adds. “We could ask Shiro to take us close. Some kind of training exercise?” 

“You think he will?” Mark asks. 

“He says he wants to help,” Keith nods, squeezing his hands together. Eyes downcast as he considers the risks they’re about to take. It was one thing to surprise them, another to be part of the planning processes. The risk… He takes a deep breath, “If he won’t we’ll find another way.”

“At least we know he won’t turn us in,” Hunk reminds them. 

“All right,” Lance pounds his fist into his hand, breaking the tension. “We’ve got a plan.”

“Glad to know we’re starting off with a bang,” Mark laughs. 

“As if we could expect anything else.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And so we begin. The plan is in motion. The pieces have started to move. I was actually speaking with my beta (who is a goddess!) and she said this story might actually wrap up in as few as 10 chapters. But I'm still wrestling some plot points so we'll see. 
> 
> I'm curious. What is the one thing you guys want to see the most? Please let me know in the comments below.


	3. Three

Shiro takes a sip from his water bottle and considers his two students through narrowed eyes before glancing back down to the packet of printed emails. 

“We want to know what they’re digging for,” Keith explains but Shiro can feel he’s holding back. The same instinct that had pulled him towards Keith and Lance to begin with now flaring up in the face of a lie. “Whatever it is they’re willing to endanger student lives over, we need to know about.” 

Shiro sighs and nods his head solemnly. He has a feeling they know what’s down there, but he’s not going to push, not yet. They’ll tell him. He knows they will.  

“It’ll take me some time to swing a training event that far off campus.” Shiro explains, “You’ll need to up your scores if you want me to get you access to the training ships that could justify going off campus, especially you Keith. You’ve got a B in math and an A- in Sim Training after. I can offer some extra credit for Sim, but math is on you.”

Keith groans but bows his head in defeat. “I understand.” 

“And Lance,” Shiro says. “Your PE scores need to go up. You’re still too weak in hand-to-hand.”

Lance scowls but relents. “Can I get some extra training sessions?”

“Of course,” Shiro grins already thinking of his calendar and where to squeeze them in. With training for a new assignment coming up, he’s been ridiculously busy with doctor’s appointments and meetings. But for his students he’d make it work. “Email me your availability and I’ll see when we match.”

Lance nods, reaching into his pocket to pull out his phone. Shiro groans and stands, rolling his shoulders. He hands the papers back to Keith, “Burn these, okay? Or shred them. Whatever you need to do to cover your tracks.”

Keith accepts the papers and shoves them back into his backpack. 

“Keep your heads down and get your grades up,” Shiro instructs as Lance finishes writing him an email before shoving his phone in his backpack. “I’ll take care of the rest, okay? Trust me.”

“Of course we do, Shiro,” Keith says. “We know we can.”

Shiro doesn’t let his smile falter. He reaches out to ruffle Keith’s hair. “Alright. Enough sentiment. Warm up time!”

Lance and Keith whine before dropping down to start stretching. 

“Now now!” Shiro laughs. “I promise not to kill you two just yet!”

.

“I love flying,” Shivanni says suddenly, breaking the mutual silence that had settled over them since they’d started working on their lab for the week, working on a proposal for a new shower for the living portions of the mock-Kerberos Space pod. “I’ve loved it for as long as I can remember. I always wanted to fly first in the sky and then when I learned about the Garrison space program, I knew I needed to join the fighter pilot program.”

Hunk pauses his work to look at her face in profile. A strong jaw, slim nose. The arch of her manicured eyebrows and they way her eyelashes brush over her cheeks. The florescent lights of the lab cast her face in shadows, illuminated strategically to make her look of stone, immovable, dedicated. Since the start of this crazy adventure, Hunk has never heard her doubt or falter. Positivity emininting from her very pores. 

She turns to him and her lips are pulled down in a frown. “But I’m no Lance or Keith, you know. It doesn’t come easy like this does. Sometimes I don’t even like flying or the school work. It’s stressful.”

Hunk nods, “And…”

“And…” Shivanni sighs. “I’m thinking about switching to the engineering track. With the new semester coming up there’ll be plenty of dropouts and seats opening up. Maybe I could…” She trails off.

“But you’re not sure,” Hunk says when he realizes she is not going to continue, their homework forgotten between them. He turns to face her fully and she copies him so their knees knock together. In the light of the lab, her skin seems washed out, faded and fatigued. “You want to fly.”

“I’ve wanted it for so long,” Shivanni sighs, “Isn’t it quitting to stop now?”

“... I don’t know.”

“I know we’ve got bigger things to worry about. Who knows if we’ll even graduate. Who knows if we won’t get caught tomorrow. Maybe we won’t have a next semester. I know I should be focusing…” 

Hunk covers her mouth with his hand, cutting her off. “Breathe,” he instructs. Slowly he lowers his hand and she takes a deep breath, holding it, before letting it go. “Okay. Stop that. No one is going to think you’re selfish because you’re not throwing yourself into…” Hunk pauses, glancing around for a moment to ensure they’re alone before looking back at Shivanni. “You know. We’re all allowed to have lives. And this is important. This is your life.”

Shivanni looks away, eyes fluttering shut. “I don’t want to quit.”

“But you’re not quitting,” Hunk corrects. “You’re just doing something different.”

“That’s what Lauren says,” Shivanni laughs. “I’ve been talking about it with her for a while… since before Halloween. But I don’t know… I want to know what you think.”

“What I think?” Hunk frowns. “Why does what I think matter?”

Shivanni snorts and rolls her eyes, looking at him with an incredulous look. “Because you’re important to me, asshole. I respect your opinion. What do you think I should do?”

Hunk frowns, scratching at his chin thoughtfully. “You’re brilliant. You’re good at engineering. Working with you is my favorite part of the week. I enjoy the classes we spend together and I would love to spend more time with you. If you switch tracks we would be in more classes together. But I also know you enjoy flying. I know you like the rush.”

“But?” Shivanni prompts.

“But you can fly as an engineer,” Hunk grins, reaching out to place a reassuring hand on her shoulder. “I’d rather not because it’s terrifying, but you can fly, Shivanni. No matter what, I know you’ll fly. But the question is, will you fly doing something you love? Plus… I don’t think you’d bring this up if you didn’t already know what you wanted to do.”

Shivanni nods, smiling slightly. She reaches up and grips the hand holding her shoulder. “You’re right…”

“I’m right?” Hunk echoes. 

“I wouldn’t bring it up if I didn't already know, would I?” Shivanni chuckles, shaking her head. She squeezes his hand reassuringly before pushing it off. “Okay,” she takes a deep breath. “Let’s get something to eat. I think we’ve earned a break.”

Hunk rolls his shoulders and starts packing away his things. “Alright. Am I cooking?”

Shivanni hums, throwing her backpack over her shoulder. “Yes. Yes I think you will be.”

And who is Hunk to argue?

.

On the fourth day of class since break, Team Nine are called up. 

As Keith pulls on his helmet, he eyes the ranking and calls to Lance, “I’m coming for you, Ten.”

Team Ten stick their tongues out in unison. “I’d like to see you try, Kogane,” Mark taunts. Lauren blows a raspberry in her sister’s direction. 

“Okay, okay, children,” Iverson commands, opening the simulator doors. “Let’s keep the taunting and playing to our off hours. I’m not teaching brats.” 

Shiro snorts, burying his face in his clipboard. 

“Have anything to add, Shirogane?” Iverson asks. 

Fighting to contain his smile, Shiro shakes his head. “No sir. Sorry sir.”

“That’s what I thought!” Iverson booms, ushring Keith, Vicky, and Sophia on board. “Let’s get this rolling.”

Keith rolls his shoulder and takes his seat. The screen turns on to reveal a star filled view, their ship docked just outside of the Earth’s gravitational pull. The simulator isn’t one he’s familiar with, but their mission is simple. 

“A repair mission,” Vicky calls out, reading off of the information package. “A colony ship requesting assistance out by Jupiter. Keith, you’ll be dropping us in and picking us up while avoiding the various meteors in the area. Me and Vicky on repair.”

“Easy peasy,” Keith grins, flipping the appropriate switches to warm the engine and Sophia finishes walking through the safety checks. “Prepare for drop. 5…

4…

3…

2…

1…”

.

On the outside, Lance’s heart drops as the sim starts flashing red. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!!!! I hope you're enjoying your holiday. I can't believe VLD is done. Crazy right?
> 
> I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Thank you everyone for answering my question last chapter. I really enjoyed all your answers. Some I expected; some I did not. :D So now I have a new question. What did you think of the chapter and who's your favorite OC? (Thank you for indulging me!)


	4. Four

The simulator screams as it comes to an end. The lights flash red once, twice, a third time and then shuts off. The students are murmuring, hissing. Someone behind him wonders why this is happening again. Shiro’s face is white, ghostly, as he grips his clipboard. Iverson seems unmoved, staring at the readout on the screen with laser focus. 

“Team twelve, line up,” Iverson barks before stepping towards the simulation door. 

Lance watches anxiously with the students, unsure if he’s allowed up the ramp. Shiro follows Iverson. Slowly, the door opens. 

Keith stumbles out slowly, leaning heavily on Sophia with Vicki trailing behind. His hair is a mess like he’d been running his fingers through it again and again, and his eyes are bloodshot and watery. Lance tries to rush forward as paramedics arrive from out of nowhere as if they’d been waiting for this moment. 

“Lance,” Keith whispers when they make eye contact. A paramedic is holding him now, white gloved hands wrapped around his bicep as Lance bullies his way closer. “Lance.”

“Keith,” Lance half-sobs, eyes watering. His heart sinks. He knows. He understands. He reaches out and takes Keith’s hand in his own. “It’s okay. It’s over.”

“Hey V,” Lauren whispers walking over to embrace her sister. “Got your own did you?”

Vicki snorts, wet and snotty as she leans into her twin. “Unfortunately.” A paramedic is checking her blood pressure. 

“Stay,” Keith whispers.

“Of course,” Lance promises. “I’ll stay. I’m staying.” He looks to the paramedic for confirmation and receives a steady nod. 

“Break it up,” Iverson commands, ushering them on. Lance holds on tight as the paramedics start leading them out of the classroom. “Team Twelve, you’re up please.”

Slowly the crowd parts and a group of nervous teens are pushed forward. The last thing Lance sees as the paramedics wheel them out is Iverson rubbing his chin thoughtfully. 

. 

It goes to shit within the first ten minutes. 

For the first five, Keith settles in for a joy ride. Maybe some asteroid hopping to pass the time after dropping off his team at the colony ship. They’d repair it; he’d circle back to pick them up and take them home, a glorified handy-man delivery service. 

After the chaos of the last few classes, he’s ready for something gentle to ease back into the swing of things. 

And then they arrive to the colony ship. Shattered pieces of debris casually float by, easing his ship into a crawl, Keith mindlessly dodges through the wreckage as his team falls silent in horror. 

A body floats by. 

“What…” Vicki hisses, leaning forward in her seat as if that could reset their view. “What the fu--?”

_ Thunk. _

Keith takes a deep breath and holds it, glancing up at the roof of their ship. 

_ Thunk. Thunk. Thunk. Thunk. Thunk. Thunk. _

Rhythmic, steady. Like someone knocking on your front door. 

“That doesn’t sound good,” Sophie hisses, edging closer. 

Keith nods, gently pressing on the gas as he makes his way closer to the epicenter. Siren warnings flashing in the back of his mind as he scans the skies for a sign of why. A surreal feeling of deja vu settles in. This scene would be more familiar with different, red controls in his hands. 

There are no galra ships in the sky, but that doesn’t mean they haven’t been here. That doesn’t mean they couldn’t be hiding. 

“Get your helmets on,” Keith snaps, instinct more than reason. 

_ Crunch.  _

Above them, the head of a glowing spear pierces their hull. 

. 

Keith has been awake for an hour, staring blankly at the wall, while Lance held his hand in his support. Neither has dared to speak as if breaking the fragile silence akin to tearing out the very foundation of this room. 

Still, Lance wants to scream. He wants to punch the walls and break the furniture. Rage runs hot under his skin and leaves him twitching, itching to pull a trigger as if fighting could solve this problem. 

And then the door dares to open. 

Iverson is dressed in formal wear, having changed somewhere between the end of class and arriving in Keith’s hospital room. Lance glares, eyes narrowed in distaste as the commander enters the room. Either unaware or, more likely, uncaring, Iverson removes his hat and coat, placing them tastefully on the coat rack before addressing the room. 

“Well done, Cadet Kogane,” Iverson says as he steps forward. Keith stares at the wall for a moment longer before turning to look at the commander. 

“Thank you, sir,” Keith mumbles. 

“Cadet McClain,” Iverson addresses. 

“Sir.” Lance says just short of a snarl. 

“Could you please step out of the room?”

Lance hesitates. He grips Keith’s hands tightly and turns to look at his partner. Every part of him screams no. The thought of leaving Keith with the enemy…

But Keith says yes, just a subtle dip of his head. And Lance trusts him. 

“Yes, sir,” Lance says, squeezing Keith’s hand one last time before rising from the armchair he’d pushed next to the bed earlier. “I’ll be in the hallway,” he says more for Keith than for Iverson. 

And then he waits. 

. 

Sophia  and Vicki are screaming as they jam their helmets on. Keith’s heart pounds as he puts on his own, mind already spinning plan after plan as he takes in their limited space and limited tools. The biggest weapon the laser screwdriver locked away in  Sophia’s  tool box. 

Then the spear starts to buzz. For a moment, Keith can see nothing but the glowing purple point, pulsating in their ceiling. And then the world explodes. 

White. Silence. Up and down switch again and again as he hurtles through space, weightless. Ears ringing. He hits something, hard. His back aches. His hip aches. His head rolls as he fights down his nausea. He squints against the white dots in his vision as he forces himself to think, breathing in artificial air.

His coms crackle into life. 

“Hello.” Sophia. Voice shaky but alive. “Can anyone hear me?”

“Y-yes,” Keith coughs, voice rough. Slowly, he orients, flipping so he’s right side up. Around him chunks of metal float by. “Vicki?”

There is a moment of heart wrenching silence as he waits, forcing himself to keep his breath steady. In, out, in out…

The com crackles. “Here.”

“Oh thank god,” Sophia nearly sobs. “Where are you guys? I can’t see you.”

“Me neither.” He aches for his paladin suit. Earth hasn’t made jet packs standard issue yet. But he refuses to despair. 

His training kicks in. As if he could hear Allura screaming at him in the back of his mind, he starts to organize his thoughts. “Is anyone injured?”

“No.” “Not really.” 

“Okay,” Keith thinks. No weapons. No transportation. No radio. Of those things, two are easier to make. “Does anyone have a landmark? Something we could work our way towards.” 

He need to regroup and think. He has yet to catch a real glimpse of their attacker. A spear, high tech and explosive. If it is Galra than it’s a specialist. The Galra rarely gave out special weapons to their foot soldiers. 

Scanning the sky, Keith thinks. Not a piece or rubble, something unmoving, something… something… As if on cue, there is a series of sparks in the peripheral of his vision. Spinning, he hears Vicki and Sophia gasp. 

A galra ship. Large enough to house a battalion and their families materializes into view. A fighter, like a dark purple shooting star, passes overhead most likely carrying their attacker home. 

“Is that… Is that…” Vicki mumbles, voice shaking. 

“Aliens,” Sophia fills in. “Aliens. Motherfucking aliens. Oh my god. Oh my god.”

“Guys. Guys!” Keith commands. “Now is not the time to panic.”

“Aliens, Keith!” Sophia screams in his ear. “If now isn’t the time to panic, when is?” 

“I thought all of our sims were based on past missions!” Vicki cries. “Since when does the Garrison just make shit up?” 

“It doesn’t matter,” Keith snaps. “You can all see that ship right? That means that’s our landmark.”

“Excuse me, you want us to go towards the giant alien spaceship?” Sophia snaps.

“Unless you have a better idea?” Keith snarls, pressure rising. He takes a deep breath and holds it. He wants his sword. He really, really wants his sword. “They have ships. We don’t. I don’t want to die out here.”

“We could just wait,” Sohpia offers. “The sim has to end somehow.”

“Lance’s sim didn’t end until he died,” Keith says. “They had aliens too.”

Vicki curses softly under her breath. “It’s like  _ that  _ sim.”

“Yes.”

There is a moment of silence as Keith waits. He can’t force them. He can’t even see them. But their only way home is to move forward. Real or sim, it doesn’t matter. Keith refuses to roll over and die like a dog. 

_ Are you watching, Iverson? Are you pleased?  _ Keith thinks with a sneer. 

“Fine,” Sophia says, finally. “I’m close. I’ll wait a bit so we can enter at the same time.”

“I’m not,” Vicki says. He can hear her breathing pick up, probably as she jumps from platform to platform. Basic gymnastics and parkour had been drilled into their heads from the very beginning. “I’ll let you know when I’m close.”

“Try for the side with the spike,” Keith says as he kicks off his own platform and grapples towards the next. “The ship is big. I’d rather we not get lost.”

“This is the dumbest thing I’ve ever done,” Sophia says. 

Keith snorts. “I’ve done worse.”

.

Keith calmly watches Lance leave the room. 

His heart feels unnaturally slow and he side eyes the IV drip as Iverson takes Lance’s seat. 

“How are you feeling, Cadet?” Iverson asks gently. For a mastermind he seems genuinely worried. Keith has always been good at reading adults. Kids… peers are harder. Their motives hidden behind layers of social understanding that he never managed to get a hundred percent right. But adults are easier to understand. They look at a kid and create a list of expectations that you either meet or don’t. If you meet them consistently enough, some of them start to care. If you fail them consistently enough, they get angry. 1 + 1 = 2. Easy. 

Iverson cares. Keith can read it in the worry in his eyes and the slight frown on his lips. He sits forward, forearms balanced on his thighs and hands clasped harmlessly before him. Lance says Iverson threatened him with Keith’s safety. Keith scans Iverson’s face and cannot find the man Lance sees. 

“Tired,” Keith answers truthfully. “Confused.”

Iverson hums in understanding. He shifts, sits up straighter. “Did Cadet McClain tell you anything about the first sim he ever took in the advance course?”

“No,” Keith lies. 

Iverson nods, pleased. “Good. You’ll be asked to confirm this later, Keith. But I had to check.” 

“So Lance saw….” Keith plays dumb. “Those things? The aliens?”

Iverson nods, eyes gentle again. “It must have been very scary.”

“It was,” Keith says and he doesn’t have to pretend to recall the fear he’d felt as he’d lead two inexperienced team members through the unknown. Vicki… “I don’t understand though. What was that all testing?”

“I can’t say just yet,” Iverson explains. Outside the sun begins to set. “But Shirogane will be speaking with you both about a training program over break. Attend, do well and I’ll be able to tell you.”

“I see…” Keith frowns. Holding his cards tight to his chest, he asks. “Sir, is this… is this legal?”

Iverson laughs and grins reassuringly. “Of course, Cadet. This is all coming down from the woman with the highest paygrade.”

Keith stares in shock, eyes wide. “The president?”

Iverson nods before pressing a finger to his lips. “Tell no one. Not even Cadet McClain.”

“Is he in trouble?” Keith presses, mind spinning as he tries to piece together the clues Iverson is offering. 

Iverson tilts his hand from side to side as if to say so-so. “He’s not in trouble legally, if that’s what you’re worried about. But he did not perform as well as you.” 

“Oh?”

“He did well, but he did not manage to escape with his full team like you did.” Iverson explains. 

“But I didn’t make it out,” Keith frowns. “We got… blown out of the sky…”

Iverson shakes his head. “But you bordered with both of your teammates and the hostage. I can’t explain more; I really wish I could. But not yet.”

“I understand,” Keith says even if he doesn’t, even if he has more questions than ever. His head hurts. “Can I… can I tell Lance about the training camp?”

Iverson thinks on it for a moment and then nods, “Yes. Just know this, Cadet. I’ve been pushing for you two since day one. I know you’ll go far, the both of you. No matter what anyone else says, got it? You and Lance, but you especially… I’ve known since your entrance exam. You’ve got talent, son. More talent in your right finger than most have in their whole body. Just a few more tests and the whole universe is going to open up for you, do you understand?”

Keith nods. He feels faint. “Yes, sir. I-I think so sir,” he lies. 

Iverson grins and reaches out to squeeze his shoulder reassuringly. “Get some rest, Cadet. Take the rest of the week off. We’ll see you Monday.” 

Keith watches him leave, head spinning. 

.

By the time Keith reaches one of the service doors on the side of the ship, he’s sweating, greedily sucking in air faster than his suit can produce. His heart hammering away in his chest. In his ear, Vicki confirms she’s reached the ship alongside Sophia. 

“We’re about... “ Vicki pauses, whispering quietly in her head as she makes the calculations. “About two hundred meters from the front of the ship.”

Keith glances left and right and asks, “What part is the front for you?”

“The cone bit,” Vicki says. 

Keith looks to the left where the back engines form a cone. It’s not worth correcting. “Okay. I’m closer to the back.”

“How should we meet you?” Sophia asks. 

Keith bites his lip, thinking. He has a vague understanding of how a ship of this size must be laid out from memory alone, but no way to justify that knowledge. He considered telling them to get in and wait for him to arrive, but he knows they’ll argue and do what they want anyway. Vicki has always reminded him of Pidge in that way. Sophia is no better. 

“Meet in the middle,” Vicki pipes up. “Play it by ear, communicate, try and find something like a map. If you find a hanger with ships stay and direct the others.”

“Don’t talk to aliens,” Sophia reminds him as if it needs to be said, as if he’s going to sit down for tea and a friendly chat with a Galra. 

Keith snorts before forcing the door open with his knife. “Good luck.”

.

Hunk smiles, nervously wiping his palms on the rough denim of his jeans, before knocking carefully on Professor Sutherland’s door. There is a long moment of silence. Heart pounding in his ears, he wonders if he’s made a mistake. He checks his phone and swallows. Noon on the dot, like the email had said. 

_ But what if I got the date wrong…. _ Hunk worries, nippling lightly on his bottom lip. The silence continues. 

He’s about to raise his hand to knock again when the door clicks open. He plasters on his best friendliest smile and straightens his posture. Before him stands Professor Sutherland, hair falling out of her tight bun, glasses slightly askewed on her face. It is the most unkempt Hunk has ever seen the otherwise proper Professor and he wonders if he just woke her from a nap. 

“Cadet  Galeai !” she greets, ushering him in with swift movements. The door quickly clicking shut behind them. “I apologize. Were you waiting long?”

Hunk quickly shakes his head as he takes a seat on the same sofa he had before. “No, Professor. I apologize if I’m disturbing you.”

She waves off his concern, smiling. A few more pieces of curly brown hair slips out of her bun. It’s the most human she’s ever looked. “Please. Give me a moment to freshen up and I will be right with you. Would you like anything? Tea or coffee?”

“I’m fine with water,” Hunk says, unzipping his backpack and pulling out the few articles and papers he’d assembled for their meeting. His friends had asked him to be a suck up and he was going to be the best kiss ass known to man. He arranges the papers neatly on the coffee table before looking back at Professor Sutherland. 

For the first time he notices the dark circles under her eyes. For a minute, he feels true guilt for waking her up. Hair messy, clothes slightly wrinkled, clearly exhausted…  she looks human, not like someone potentially covering up a huge government conspiracy about aliens. And Hunk… Hunk can’t help feel empathy. He too is only human. 

“If it’s not a good time I can come back later,” Hunk suggests. “This is a personal project so there isn’t a real time constraint.”

Professor Sutherland sets his glass of water down on the table. “No, please. I’ll just be a moment. Thank you for your patience, Cadet Galeai.”

“Sure.”

Hunk watches her leave with a guilty heart before taking a sip of his water.  _ Mineral-y.  _

The office looks the same as the last time he was here, not that he expected much else. Still too formal, too ornate. The windows are covered by a thin blind that does little to keep the heat out. He sets his water down and stands to pursue the bookcase as he waits. No reason to sit there bored. 

As he glances through books and books of science, history, and philosophy (a copy of Hawking’s  _ A Brief History of Time _ and Plato’s  _ Republic  _ the most worn and well loved), he notices a strange circular object jammed towards the back of one of the shelves. White with thin blue lines that seem to hold their own internal light. It pulses under his fingers for a second. The design, thin and lightweight with a few perforations in the upper half like a speaker. In a lot of ways it reminds him of the latest model of communicators pilots were being equipped with. Except white instead of the familiar steel gray and lighter than what was shown in class. He tosses it lightly in the air and watches the way the blue lights dim and brighten as it moves through the air. 

The door knob clicks. Fear wraps tight around his throat and before he can rationalize it, he’s set the object back on the book shelf and pulled out a copy of Hawkings with his other hand, heart pounding. 

“That’s better!” Professor Sutherland announces. Hunk glances at her from the top of his book and notices she’d fixed her hair and changed her clothes. She notices him standing by the bookshelf and smiles. “It’s one of my favorites. He has such an interesting way of looking at things.”

Hunk nods, nervously chewing on his bottom lip. “I’ve never managed to finish it.”

“You can borrow it,” she offers. “I’m always happy to encourage a student’s interests. Speaking of interests, you said you wanted to discuss my work in your email?”

“Oh… yeah,” Hunk quickly hurries back to his seat, careful not to knock anything over. He sets the book aside and grabs the sheets of paper he’d printed out the night before after hours of binge reading. “I’m um- I’m interested in doing an independent study next year and I was looking into covering a few topics when I noticed you’ve written a lot about the mathematics of wormholes. You called them um… gates.”

She nods.

He clears his throat awkwardly. “It’s just… it’s pretty radical. We didn’t even think it was possible to create a sustainable wormhole six years ago and I mean now you’re saying we can travel through them. It’s such a fast growing field of research I was really hoping to get a better look at it.” 

She smiles, pleased. “I’m so happy to hear that, Cadet. I really am. Your work is already the talk of the engineering department. I’m sure many of your professors would be happy to help you with your independent study, myself included.”

“Really? That’s fantastic!” Hunk grins. Aaron had asked him to get close and he couldn’t see any way of getting closer. “Because I actually had some questions about your research. Particularly here,” he points to where he’d circled a section in orange highlighter. “When you’re discussing the physical properties of the gate you discuss it as if you’ve seen one.”

“Because I have… or at least a model of it,” Professor Sutherland clarifies. “In fact… why don’t you come down to my lab next weekend. I actually have another appointment in a few minutes.So I apologize again for wasting your fifteen. But why don’t you come down to my lab and you can see one for yourself.”

Hunk’s eyes widen, “Oh… wow. Wouldn’t that be top secret? A project like that…”

“Don’t worry about that,” Professor Sutherland laughs. “With the way things are going I doubt you won’t have the clearance for much longer. And honestly, these military types are too secretive. Email me and I’ll let you know when it is a good time, okay?”

Hunk nods jerkily, too confused to argue let alone ask any questions.  _ If she’s the guy in charge then I guess she can give clearance to anyone she wants? _

She stands with easy grace and he hurries to follow her, collecting his papers and nearly knocking over his forgotten water glass. 

“Thank you for your time,” he says, clutching his papers to his chest as she leads him out. 

“Thank you for your interest,” she replies. He steps around her into the hall. “I see good things in your future, Cadet. Keep it up.”

The door closes with a click. 

Hunk takes a deep breath, the pages crinkling in his grip as he forces his heart to slow. Mechanically he turns away and starts to walk down the hall. As he passes the cafeteria, heart still beating just a bit too fast, he feels his phone buzz in his pocket. Fishing it out he feels his heart kick up as he reads the message from Shivanni. 

_ Keith got a sim. _

.

They’ve been moving for around an hour, check ins constant and frequent as they do their best to meet somewhere in the middle. The ship is a maze. Keith thought he was familiar with the galra ships but this must be an older model then what he’s used to because nothing is where he thinks it is. 

Vicki and Sophia have fallen oddly silent and his heart beats loud in his ears. He ducks behind a corner as he hears the familiar stomp of marching soldiers. 

“Keith,” Vicki hisses and he jerks, nearly bumping his head. “We found the ships.”

“Really?” Keith whispers. “Where?”

There is a crackling sound and then Sophia. “I’ll send you our coordinates. There is a soft bing as the reader on his arm picks up their location. “I don’t think we’re too far.”

“This place is hell,” Vicki snaps. “I’ve never been more terrified in my entire life. Fuck this sim and fuck the garrison and fuck the aliens.”

Sophia snorts. 

“Not like that!”

Keith snickers softly under his breath. The footsteps drew closer and he mutes his coms just in case. Newer models of the galra foot soldiers had been capable of picking up on the static of a com frequency. But who knows if this variation is the same as his memories. Better safe than sorry. 

As the machines pass by, he holds his breath. Two then six then ten pass and he waits, mentally counting the seconds. As he reaches 30, he shifts, getting ready to dart out of his hiding place and towards his teammates. 

And then he hears it: another set of footsteps. Strong but not perfectly uniform, not like the machines. He dares to stick his head out just far enough to see around the corner. His heart stops. 

Axca. Younger. Longer hair. But her. Axca in a galra officer’s uniform, gun at her hip. He gasps, mouth falling open in shock. Even if the Garrison knew about the Galra and the Galra ships. Even if they had done scouting missions and found broken Galra machines in the wreckages. Even if… How? How could they have know this? How could they simulate Axca?

So frozen in shock, he doesn’t realize she’s spotted him until the gun is pressed against his face. 

“Human,” she snarls. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I just doubled the word count of this story in one chapter. 
> 
> Solid.
> 
> Well I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. I did my best to sprinkle in some much needed tension and hints. What you guys think these kids are gonna have it easy? HA! Whose story are you reading? :P
> 
> Thank you as always for your amazing comments! YA'LL ARE TOO GREAT! So here's my question for today: What do you guys think of Iverson? Like him? Hate him? What did you think of him in this chapter?


	5. Five

“What do you mean Axca?” Lance cries far too loud before remembering himself. He glances quickly around the hospital room as if anyone was there to listen before focusing back on Keith. Nervous energy hums under his skin as he fidgets, tapping his foot. 

“It’s what I saw,” Keith hisses, picking at his blanket. He’s hunched over, eyes starring a million miles away as he recounts his tale. “I swear, Lance. I swear I’m not making this up.”

“I believe you,” Lance reassures. “I believe you even if it’s completely insane. How could the Garrison know? It’s one thing to know about Galra and model a simulation; it’s another to know a Galra we know, know a younger version of the Galra we know!” 

“I know!” Keith sighs. “I know, okay. It’s insane. Unless they met her….”

“And what if they did,” Lance cuts in, eyes closed as he rubs the bridge of his nose. “We never considered it. We assumed it was a fake sim based on a hypothetical situation, that… that they got a bunch of first hand accounts and reconstructed it, right? But what if… what if they didn’t?”

Keith frowns, confusion plain on his face. 

“Traditionally sims are based on memories, downloaded from the pilot or team that did then, right? That’s why they’re always based on successful missions” Lance gnaws on his bottom lip as he thinks. “What if this is no different?”

“So you’re saying the terraformer mission… my mission,” Keith takes a deep breath. “You’re saying the Galra are in our solar system, wrecking our ships, and the Garrison knows about it?”

“How else could they know about Axca?” Lance presses.  

“Well because it didn’t happen last time?” Keith argues.

“Well… well last time they weren’t trying to dig Blue out where they?” Lance defends. “Last time she was just there and we stumbled upon her. No blowing up the mountains. I mean you were in the advanced class last time? Did you get a Sim?”

“I mean I got a terraforming mission but it was just a normal simulation! Nothing… nothing like this,” Keith sighs. “But what you’re saying… what this means…”

“Either we didn’t go back in time,” Lance sighs, turning to look out the open window to the desert beyond. “Or this is one of those parallel universes where nothing makes sense. Or… or…”

“Or we weren’t the only ones to go back,” Keith finishes. 

.

He’s limping by the time he manages to get away from Axca. The gash in his right leg leaving at trail of blood behind him. His suit no longer space ready. Going out now… without a ship would kill him. 

_ It’s just a simulation,  _ Keith thinks desperately as his heart hammers away in his chest.  _ It’s just a simulation. It’s just a simulation.  _

But it doesn’t feel like one. Too real, too crisp. His senses at war with his brain. He wants Lance. He wants his team. He needs to get home. 

He finds the ship bay. Galra fighters. Dark purple and red line the wall and he takes a deep breath and unmutes his communicator. “I’m here,” he hisses softly. 

“Third ship from the door.” Sophia responds. “We managed to metaphorically pick the lock but Vicki is still working on getting the doors open.”

He moves, limping closer and closer. When he sees them, familiar white, gray, orange garrison suits, he feels only relief. 

“You’re fucking bleeding,” Sophia cries when she sees him. “Why didn’t you say anything?”

“It’s fine. We’re fine.” Keith reassures. “I just need to get out of here.”

“Not so fast.”

It’s none of them but it’s on their frequency. It’s in their helmets. Keith takes a deep breath, fights down the terror that threatens to drown him. The galra knew their radio signals… but how? They shouldn’t have their technology yet. 

“Vicki!” Sophia screams. “Get those doors open!”

“I’m trying!” Vicki screams back. “It just won’t respond.”

Keith feels like an idiot. He starts running towards the control panel on the far side of the room. Of course it wouldn’t respond to Vicki. She’s human and him… He’s not only human. 

He wordlessly slams his palm down on the handprint and watches the gates open.

“How did you do that?” Vicki cries.

“Less questions, more moving,” Keith snaps back as he hobbles as fast as he can back to Sophia who is already prepping the ship. “Or have you forgotten the aliens?”

“Moving. Moving!” Vicki huffs. 

Of course that’s when they open fire. 

Dodging behind the body of a fighter, Keith curses, “We’re pinned down.”

“I’m coming,” Sophia reassures as her ship lights up a brilliant red, “Get ready to jump in.”

Keith isn’t sure how he made it. Adrenaline, he’ll tell Lance later and then later the team. It’s the only thing that makes sense. By the time he scrambles on board, he can’t feel his leg. 

“Get over here!” Sophia cries as they make it to open skies. Debris and Galra fighter pilots waiting in formation just beyond. “And get us home.”

They make it twelve minutes before they’re shot out of the sky.

.

Hussain picks up on the third call. 

“Someone else got injured,” Aaron says before his cousin can get a word in. There is a pregnant pause on the other end of the line before he hears rustling and his cousin clear his throat. 

“Tell me what happened.”

Aaron frowns. “You know I can’t.”

“God damn it, B,” Hussain groans. “I knew I wanted a government conspiracy. I didn’t want my little cousin getting mixed up in it all.”

“Yeah well…” Aaron shrugs helplessly. “I need your help. Shivanni is with me. Tell me what you need her to build.” 

Most of the technical jargon goes over his head. He’s never wanted to be an engineer but he’s a decent flyer. He knows the basics of repair but building something… He’ll leave that to Hunk and Shivanni. All he knows is they need a to get his cousin an in. And from there… well…

Aaron desperately tries not to think about his father.

“It’s going to be okay,” Shivanni says suddenly, breaking him out of his thoughts. 

“I know,” Aaron sighs. “This isn’t what I expected when I came to the Garrison, you know? Classes. Homework. Dating. Not… not this.”

“Yeah,” Shivanni sighs and takes a seat next to him on the bed. She takes his hand in his and gives it a gentle squeeze. “But you know what? I never expected to get into the Garrison. I never expected to meet the friends I did. I’ve only know you all for a few months really but… but I’ve never felt that close to someone so fast before. You guys are all my family. I didn’t expect it but I’m glad it happened.”

Aaron smiles and squeezes back. “You’re all family to me, too.” _ That’s why I don’t want to leave. _

.

Three days later, Keith finally finds himself discharged from the hospital. Two hours later, he finds himself riding in the back of Shiro’s car for the second time in this life.  _ Cleaned of all the blood, _ he assumes, running a finger along the warm leather. 

“I’m glad you’re alright,” Shiro says as they break from the road and onto the many dirt paths crisscrossing the desert. “You and Lance. You’re going to give me gray hair.”

Lance snorts, probably remembering Shiro’s old haircut. “I’m sure you’ll look very dignified, all gray.”

Keith sees him roll his eyes in the rearview mirror and smiles. “So tell us more about this winter camp.”

“It is optional,” Shiro stresses. “But... It’ll be a good opportunity to learn more. They won’t even tell me what it’s completely about. Just an international training camp for exceptional flyers.”

“You think it has to do with the sim?” Lance presses.

Keith sighs, leaning heavily against Lance as the car bumps along. 

Shiro shrugs, “I don’t think it’s a coincidence that we’re getting the invitation right after Keith gets his own Sim.”

Lance whistles softly. 

The car falls into silence. 

The sim… he’s been unable to think of anything else. Lying in that hospital bed, thinking about what Lance had said. They’d been to alternate universes before; but there had always been a way to get back and they’d never changed ages when they’d gone through, never replaced the versions of Lance and Keith who existed in those universes before them. 

No… Alternate universe just doesn’t make sense. 

But time travel… Time travel did. It was within the realm of possibility (as impossible as their lives were). But for things to change without their control (and nothing Keith and Lance did could have changed the world this much), it must mean someone else had gone back with them. 

And as far as Keith knows, the only people capable of time travel… the same people who’d probably accidentally sent Keith and Lance back in time… were the Galra.

Keith closes his eyes. He wishes he could stop thinking about it. 

.

They arrive at the crater (because really there is no other way of describing it) with little fanfare. 

Lance expected more. A guard or two? A checkpoint? Didn’t excavation sites usually have security? He glances nervously up at the clear blue sky for drones and sees nothing. 

“We have permission to be on site,” Shiro reassures, pulling their gear out of their trunk. “The ships are further down the road, about a twenty minute walk but this is the closest I can bring the car.”

“So this is where they’re digging, huh?” Keith asks, squatting down by the edge to look over. “Deep. Doesn’t look like they’ve found anything.”

“Don’t fall over,” Shiro commands. 

Keith throws him a thumbs up. 

Lance frowns and looks at the surrounding mountains. Blue isn’t here. She’s close but they’re off. Are they looking for her? Or something else. 

He starts walking towards the far eastern mountain, familiar in an instinctual way. He’s only been here once before but he knows. It’s hard to forget something that life changing. 

Shiro and Keith are bickering about knots somewhere behind him as they finish double checking their gear. Neither notice him.

He’s about fifty steps off the road when he hears her. 

_ Not yet.  _

It’s the clearest he’s ever heard her. Tears prickle at the corner of his eyes and he wants to run to her, to embrace her. He feels her along the edge of the his mind, aching. 

After the mess of these last few days, after all the thoughts running around and around in his head as he comes to terms with the idea that the Galra might know about their future, he wants to feel safe. 

_ Soon,  _ She promises. _ Soon. _

“Lance?”

He turns back.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Spring Break is next week! I am so excited. I'll be in NYC. :D
> 
> Hope you all are having a good year! As always please let me know what you think about this chapter. I've been waiting to drop that plot twist for ages. XD


	6. Six

Finally, the first week of December begins and with it the stress of finals and the departing of the upperclassmen. 

Every year, the upperclassmen leave on internships around the world, an international military exchange program that places students from all walks of life to encourage peaceful relations between all countries. And this year, Lauren and Markus would be leaving them. 

“Keep these a secret,” Shivanni says as she hands over two small black boxes to Lauren. “I didn’t have the time to make a thumbprint scanner or anything. They have a simple password, but not much else. Call us if you need anything or find anything. If they break well...” she gestures to where Mark is speaking with Hank. “He should be able to fix them seeing as he helped me make them and all.”

“Thank you,” Lauren smiles reaching out to ruffle her hair. “Don’t worry about us, okay? We’ll keep our heads down and let you know if we need anything.”

Shivanni reaches out and grabs Lauren in a hug. “Just don’t get caught okay? One bullet wound was enough.”

“Double for you lot,” Lauren smiles. “Especially you, Keith.”

Keith scowls lightly, stepping close as Shivanni pulls away, sniffling lightly. “I’ll do my best.”

“Keep them out of trouble, Hunk,” Lauren cries, pulling Hunk and Mark’s attention back to the main group.

Walking over, Hunk rubs the back of his neck sheepishly. “I’ll do my best, but you know how Lance is.”

“Hey!” Lance cries in mock-hurt. “It wasn’t even me who ended up in the hospital this time!”

Keith rolls his eyes and elbows him in the side. “Asshole.”

Smiling, Lance pushes his way to the front of the group and pulls them all in for a hug. “I’m going to miss you guys. Flight class won’t be the same without Team Eleven ruining everyone else’s scores.”

“Keep kicking Keith’s ass in our name,” Mark laughs.

Keith scowls. “Like hell he will.”

Lauren laughs. “Okay. We have to head down. It’s almost time to head out.” She grabs her bag and slips the two black boxes into the main pocket. “We’ll message you once we get there, legit and not so legit as a test.”

“Good,” Shivanni nods, tears drying on her cheeks. “I hate goodbyes.”

“It’s okay,” Lauren reassures. “It’s just for six months and then we’ll be back before you know it. And who knows, maybe next year will be normal.”

“I doubt it,” Mark grins, grabbing his own bag. “But you know, we had two years of normal.” He pauses for a moment, looking at each of them with a fond expression. “I’m glad we met you guys.”

“I’m really glad I met you too,” Lance promises. 

He doesn’t know what happened to them last time around. He’d never met Mark and Lauren. Maybe Keith had in passing, but Keith hadn’t been the most social type. But now… now he couldn’t imagine the Garrison without them.

“Wait up!” Keith says as he slips on his shoes. “I want to head down and say bye to Sophia and Vicky.”

“Yeah yeah! My sister has been ridiculous since your sim,” Lauren sniffs. “She keeps trying to drop hints.”

Keith laughs as they step out of the door. “Yeah you should have heard her--”

“Kick ass out there,” Lance says as Mark grabs the doorknob. 

Raising his hand in a mockful salute, Mark nods, “Won’t let you down.”

He closes the door. 

Slapping his back in solidarity, Aaron sighs, rubbing lightly at his eyes. Dark circles growing more and more prominent every day. “Come on. They’ll be fine. We need to worry about things on our side.”

Shivanni nods grimly, lips pressed tightly together. “Two days. We’ll be ready in two days.”

.

The next day, Shiro officially takes over their flight class period, the rest of the class all gone. 

He also, officially, brings up Iverson’s mysterious training program. “It’s an international bootcamp,” Shiro explains. “Top fighter pilot students from all grades are sent out for a week from Christmas to January 2nd. There isn’t a lot, just that it’s a big deal.”

“Iverson was acting like it was a test,” Keith frowns, leafing through the pamphlet, skimming the pages. “I don’t think we can refuse.”

Lance sighs. “My mom is going to be pissed.”

“When’s the last time you talked to her?” Keith asks.

“Yesterday,” Lance groans. “I haven’t mentioned this though. I didn’t want to make things awkward and I can’t afford for her to say no.”

“Do you want me to tell her?” Shiro offers.

Lance frowns, considering, before ultimately shaking his head. “I’ll do it but if she says no I’m going to need you to step in.”

“So we’re in agreement,” Keith says setting down the papers. 

“Yeah.” Lance nods, pulling out his phone. “What else can we do?”

“Okay,” Shiro sighs. “I’ll let them know.”

Stepping out into the hall, Lance redials his latest number and waits. His mom picks up on the second ring. 

A part of Lance wants to cancel, wants to tell them he has to go home, that:  _ oh whoops, “my mom said no, sorry guys” _ . 

Guilt still lingers in the back of his mind. His brother’s face as he drove away, questions and confusion. 

But… he has a mission. He is a paladin of Voltron, whatever that means when his lion tells him to wait before he can come to her. And with the Garrison potentially knowing about the future...

(He misses her. Everything is so much more simple when he is with her.) 

“Hey mom!” 

“Lance!” his mom laughs. “I didn’t think you’d call me so soon. How are you?”

“Good, good. Just finished classes with Shiro.” Lance sighs. 

“Was it as strange as you thought? Only you and Keith?”

“No,” Lance shrugs. “It was just a normal training session, nothing fancy. That being said… I um- I’m actually calling because I learned something.”

“Oh?”

“Yeah,  _ soooo  _ the garrison has invited me and Keith to go to this special training camp over winter break,” Lance bites his lip. “It’s super exclusive. Only the best of the best of the international community get to go and they want me to go. And um... “

There is a moment of pause. “When is it exactly?”

“The 26th to the 2nd.” 

“Over New Years?” his mother asks. 

“Yeah… yeah, it is,” Lance sighs, leaning back against the wall.

There is another moment of silence and then his mother asks: “Do you want to go?”

Lance closes his eyes.  _ No.  _ “Yes.”

“How much is it?”

“It’s all paid for,” Lance clarifies. 

“Okay, sweetheart.” his mother doesn’t sound very happy. “I don’t like it. You will be with us the whole Christmas. No friends; no phone; no nothing, okay?”

“Okay.” 

“Good! I’m going to squeeze as much family bonding time as I can between the 20th and the 25th and then you can go on your training camp with my blessing.” She laughs. “My goodness, I had no idea you were such a talented flyer, Lance. Congratulations.”

Lance laughs.  _ If only she knew.  _ “Thanks, mom!”

“Now tell me all about it. Will it be hard?”

“Well-”

.

He’s panting when he arrives at Professor Sutherland’s door, sweating slightly. 

He’s sprinted around campus to ensure his cover was flawless. _Sorry Professor, I couldn’t print out my paper._ _Sorry Professor, I couldn’t print out my paper._ _Sorry Professor, I couldn’t print out my paper._ He repeats in his head again and again as he clutches the flash drive Shivanni had made, virus ready and primed to go the minute he manages to plug it in. 

_ Let this work, _ he thinks, desperately as the Professor opens the door. His nerves making him sweat even more. She greets him and lets him in. This time he notices the office is the same as before except for a few folders of hastily pushed-in papers stacked precariously against the table. 

_ Looks interesting.  _

“I’m so sorry, Professor,” Hunk gasps, setting his book bag down with a thumb, fishing out the flash drive from his back pocket. “I didn’t get the chance to print out my paper. I had to stay behind after class and lost track of time. Can I use your printer?”

She smiles fondly before pouring him a glass of water. “No no, it’s fine,” she hands him the water and leads him to her computer, taking a seat. “I understand these things happen. Personally, I’m sorry I haven’t gotten you access to my lab yet. At this rate it won’t be until next semester what with all the red tape… Ah, yes. Why don’t you plug it in there,” she points to her harddrive underneath the desk. 

With shaking fingers, he goes to plug it in, realizes he’s got it upside down and flips it, and finally manages to get it into the slot. Breathing slowly, he stands back up and picks up the glass of water so he can do something with his hands. 

“Stupid pop-ups,” Professor Sutherland grumbles before telling the computer not to scan the device for viruses. Finally, the drive opens. “Now,” she says, scrolling through, “which document is yours?”

One and a half weeks of work and it all feels a little anticlimactic.  _ Still _ , he thinks as he watches her open his file,  _ step two is complete.  _

.

Lance groans, shouldering the door open as he rubs his sour bicep with the other.  _ Shiro is out to kill us _ , Lance thinks grimly as he throws his backpack down and toes off his shoes. Sweat cooling awkwardly to the back of his neck.  _ Still _ , he thinks, pressing his fingers firmly into the knots in his arms. At least he was getting some muscle back. 

It’s only after he walks over to his desk and plugs in his phone, waiting for it to turn in, does he realize Aaron is in the room. 

“Hey,” Lance greets. “Sorry, man. Didn’t realize you were there.”

His only response was silence. 

He frowns and walks over, abandoning his phone and the million messages he’s sure his family had sent him. “Aaron? You okay, buddy?”

The lump under the covers curls up into an even tighter ball.

He frowns and climbs his way onto the bed, sitting lightly on the edge. Gently placing his hand on Aaron’s side, he whispers. “Hey… you want to talk about it?”

The blanket lump shakes its head, pauses, and then shakes it again. 

“Do you want me to stay?” Lance asks, leaning down to peel off his sweaty socks before shrugging off his jacket. He’s in a painful need of a shower, but right now that might have to wait. 

The blanket lump nods its head before slowly Aaron peers out from under the blankets. “You need a shower,” he grumbles.

Laughing, Lance shoves his way onto the bed so his back is against the wall and his arms are slung over Aaron’s chest so they’re facing each other. “Comfy?”

Aaron rolls his eyes before smiling. “Yeah.”

“Been a while since we’ve done this,” Lance says just to fill in the silence. “I forgot how cuddly you are.”

“Not since you and Keith were fighting,” Aaron agrees. “God... that was only a month ago, wasn’t it? How has so much happened, already?”

Lance hums in agreement, “It’s been nonstop since we got here, hasn’t it?”

Aaron nods in agreement, before sighing. 

“You sure you don’t want to talk about?” Lance prods gently. He moves his hand up and down in soothing circles along his side. “I’m happy to listen. I know you said there was something you wanted to tell me last week…”

Aaron squeezes his eyes shut and closes his eyes. “I-I… In the morning,” he whispers. “I’ll tell you all in the morning.”

Lance nods in understanding and pulls him closer. “It’s okay,” he promises. “We’ll be here in the morning.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay so real talk, I have been writing this series for a long time. My writing style and my abilities has a writer have improved. If I were starting this series today, I would have planned things a little different. I definitely would have paced things a little differently. I'm trying to get a lot in in a few chapters. And at this point I realize it's been very go go go and not enough character time which is like... 90% of the reason why I love this story. As such, I'm going to rework things, slow some things down, and add like... two to three more chapters to this arc. That's why the chapter counter has gone up. 
> 
> I hope you guy's don't mind! 
> 
> And as always, please let me know your thoughts. And I'm a bit curious, what do you all think of Professor Sutherland?


End file.
